Helen Hornsby, 32, from Scunthorpe, risked a fine when she took her seven-year-old daughter Megan out of school for a holiday to Cornwall.

She said: "I did it when she was in reception because I could not adjust my own holiday time to match the school holidays.

"I wouldn't do it now though because she is in year two.

"Education is so important but I didn't feel guilty because she would have missed a very important family holiday.

"By going away during term time I saved around £600.

"The fact that you save money is what attracts people to do it."

Mum-of-two Sharon Pakers, 36, said prices during school holidays meant she was unable to take her children away for as long as she would like.

She said: "We are able to go away but just for not as long.

"We go away with Haven a lot but can now only afford to go away for two long weekends every year."

A spokesman for North Lincolnshire Council said the decision to authorise absence was left to the head teacher at each individual school.

He said parents faced fines or other legal sanctions if unauthorised absences continued.

He said: "This is the highest number issued so far in a single academic year. A total of 89 cases resulted in prosecution."

A spokesman for the National Association of Head Teachers said reforming the school year would bring a solution.

He said: "We understand holidays are priced differently during holidays and term time but in the long run, an education is more important.

"Schools are right to refuse to authorise holidays during term-time on a routine basis.

"Rather than allowing more leniency, we believe the solution is to reform the school year, with holidays distributed more evenly and variety across the country."

Scunthorpe MP Nic Dakin said: "There is a lot of evidence that people who attend achieve better than those with less good attendance. However, there can be difficult circumstances for parents from time to time which make it necessary for them to take children out of school to access family occasions."

My school attendance was awful, really bad, they would have put my mum in prison these days but somehow I still managed 6 O levels. I never went on holiday let alone in term time, kids were allowed back then, think they had to submit a holiday form for permission. If I recollect they may have been given a work book for when they were away and when they came back they had to tell the class about their travels. I used to love this, to be hearing from someone direct about such exotic places like benidorm was great. Travel back then was classed as one of the best ways of gaining knowledge, it makes you wonder.

Scunthorpe MP Nic Dakin said: "There is a lot of evidence that people who attend achieve better than those with less good attendance. However, there can be difficult circumstances for parents from time to time which make it necessary for them to take children out of school to access family occasions."
This is getting beyond a joke, his comments are all completely useless. He's terrified of reducing his mini-majority.
Don't his party have a mechanism to remove him from office (incompetence perhaps?) before the next election? I fear that the electorate for remove him if they don't.
He failed John Leggott, now he's failing his town and party.

PRIVATISE ALL SCHOOLS AND BRING BACK WORKHOUSES! AS FOR DAKIN, HE WAS BORN SITTING ON A FENCE!
I'M WITH LADY BRACKNELL ON EDUCATION: "I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural ignorance. Ignorance is like a delecate, exotic fruit. Touch it, and the bloom is gone"
CRUSH STATE EDUCATION! VOTE ME!!!

Hmmmm!
It would seem anyone against these fines is picking up lots of red arrows.
I'm definitely with Englander and Gordonio on this one.
As a contractor, I work well in excess of 300 days per year and the only things that I let dictate to me as to whether or not I take a holiday are;
a. Do I have the funds?
b. Can I afford the time off?
Bring on the red arrows!

A_M_T , I have worked as a contractor working out in all weathers ,If i did not turn up i would not get paid even sacked , As JohnJohn2011 stated in the good old days teachers where not afraid of picking up a shovel and scrape up a bit of snow , Not a very good example to pass on to the children who are starting out on a working life ,Should we all stay at home first bit of bad weather . Do other country's in the EU who get a lot more snow close there schools the answer is no they do not your senior management should look round and see what happens in other country's , tec col closed though snow teachers could not make it to work shame on them every other profession made it to earn wages .

Englander 61 I agree 100% with your observations and views. I know of a child that has taken time out of school for 1 ½ weeks every year until that child started secondary school, that child has been reported every year in the school report as to be achieving above average results / marks in all core subjects. It is strange that we now have 1 teacher and sometimes 2 teaching assistants too a class of 28 – 32 pupils in a junior school and that's not to mention the unpaid help by volunteers, in my day it was only 1 main teacher for the same size class. After all that extra capability and manpower we still have kids leaving school with few real life skills. We find youngsters at 16 years old been forced into college on some stupid course until they are in their 20s. They then leave college and are deemed lucky if they get a job in a fast food outlet. For a start a new radical look at how schools operate should be talked about and implemented, why for example is it not possible for schools to open their doors at 7.30am and close at 5.30pm with half hour lunch break like some industries? Ok if it is deemed too much for the children give them longer breaks. It is always assumed that when it snows a little or is a little to cold the school can not operate, I say why? When I went to work when it was snowing one of our first jobs was to shovel the snow from the yard so why can not teachers go in early and do the same for the precious children's educational needs? Why do the schools only operate for 190 days a year when most other people work for 300 + days a year? Look I know teachers and school heads do a very important job and the pay should reflect their dedication; however engineers / power station technicians / aeroplane manufactures are all professionals in their own field of expertise but do not try to dictate when a family can take a holiday to suit their own agenda. Get the schools open for 300 + days a year like other work places and have flexible holidays that is more in line with the rest of UK working population and stop imposing what they want on every one else.

englander, you do realise that the decision to close is not taken by individual teachers but by senior management? What are we to do when the workplace is closed, turn up and sit outside in the snow all day? Just so that we are seen to go to work and not come under fire from people who don't know how things operate. All the people criticising schools for closing would usually be the first to shout and sue if their child fell on ice.